Ohio National...

[wren]

Neil,

Thank you so much! Your piece is spot on wonderful. Wish I had your way with words.

Boy wouldn't that be something if your club ran the concession stand? Your club and the attendees would be winners. I know that it is not allowed.

Just to agree with you further, that Hilton is surrounded by good restaurants. I was unable to find a good spot for breakfast though-the hotels is good but pricey for what you get IMO. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

I am active in my small club and show-Eastern Iowa Poultry Association, Iowa City, Iowa. What do you do to make money? Simply entry fees and charging at the door? Our club needs to earn more.

Way worth the trip. I came home with twice the number of birds I expected. I'm absolutely going again and again. All terrific!

Again Thanks so much for taking the time to write.

 

[horsechick]

Hi,
We went last year.
I'd say its good to see, can see a lot of fine birds, great idea to know what exactly your particular fancy of breed "should" look like for future reference.
Meet breeders of what breeds you like, make contacts, they mave even have some for sale or eggs etc.

AND if you go here are some MUSTS!!!

1.) get there early for best finds/birds in the sale section. And to park close so if you buy things you don't have as far to walk to drop them in your vehicle, you do NOT want to have to carry everything around for HOURS!!

2.) EAT BEFORE YOU GET THERE, fill up, PRICES WERE/are RIDICULOUS!!!
Pack sandwichs, snacks, go to your car and eat, its highway robbery for the refreshments.

3.) bring your own 20 oz. pop/water. AGAIN, CANNOT STRESS IT IS WAY TOOOO EXPENSIVE THERE! keep cooler in your vechicle, get before you leave home, pack with ice in cooler so they stay cold.

4.) Wear comfortable clothes/shoes. No place to really sit and you will be on your feet for HOURS of looking, talking, etc...Watch weather and dress accordingly. We wore sweatshirts and jackets and were hot and tired from standing and sometimes in close confines with a lot of folks, making it hotter.

Hope those help you.
Hope you go!!
Take care,
Angela

 

[horsechick]

Neil,
how does one go about entering birds in the ohio national?
Thank you,
Angela

 

[Cuban Longtails]

I went, and I was not impressed. There were a lot of sick fowl there; it was very discouraging. There were hardly any entries in the oriental class, which is what I'm interested in.

The best fowl I saw were the Cochins, Barred Rocks, and Langshan. And the Shamo... my gods...

Big beautiful stags!

 

[sara]

There were a lot of sick birds?

 

[brooster]

at any large show there are going to be sick birds, just use safe/strict biosecurity measures.

 

[Cuban Longtails]

Quote:
For that prestigious of a show, I thought there was. I've been to smaller shows and have seen sick birds but never the magnitude that I saw in Ohio. There were birds in the sale area that looked like they'd drop over dead at any second, even some of the birds in the show cages were like that.

Maybe my expectations were set too high, but I was more impressed with the Shawnee, Oklahoma poultry show than I was with the Ohio National.

 

[Ryu]

There were some rough looking birds on exhibition there, I was kind of surprised. One poor hen in exhibition had one tail feather.

I didn't see any birds that looked seriously ill, just stressed out/bad molt mostly, but I was looking for just some specific breeds and walked past a lot of birds without really looking.

The Shamos were gorgeous! There were many beautiful birds there. I thought the Modern Game Bantams were very stylish as well and made a good showing.

I will go again. I picked up a nice bird in the Sellers Row for a good price. He needed a little tlc, but he's filling out to be even better than I thought he would. It would be nice if the Sellers area had more space. The birds were really packed in there. I think some of the sellers over loaded their alloted space by 2 or 3 times what they were suposed to have.

It was a good show, the biggest by far that I have ever been to. We met a lot of new people and bought some nice birds, and it is going to help our flock immensely.

The Hilton Garden Inn was very nice. Lovely pillow top bed. Quiet, clean, well run. It's not a bad drive back and forth, but considering the lack of seating and concession prices at the convention center plus the additional driving--we spent more time away from the show than we would have otherwise.

Keep up the good work Ohio!

 

[Neil Grassbaugh]

Quote:

 

[Ms. Lewis Rich]

I had a great time looking and showing!
We stayed at the Garden Hilton and heard some crowing each morning. LOL
I did not really see any sick birds that were being shown, with the number there I was amazed how well run it was.
Hope to be there next Nov. need to book a room one closer this time!